Snapshots of Halloween
by Samantha-Girl Scout
Summary: A picture can only capture a small portion of a memory, but a photo album can show just enough to tell a story. Here is a small collection of drabbles depicting the Vongola guardian's experiences with Halloween. Complete.
1. Pictures

**Pictures**

"Tsuna! Could you please change out some of the picture frames in the living room with the ones on the counter?" Nana calls from the kitchen where she is beginning to start on dinner.

"Okay!" Tsuna says as he picks up the pile and walks out into the living room. It was a tradition in their house to change out the pictures every time that the seasons changed. Usually Nana was the one who would do the changing, but, with all of the new additions to their small family, it seemed as though she was willing to enlist the help of her son around the house more and more. Tsuna doesn't pay too much attention to the pictures of himself, his mother, and his father until a rather happy picture of himself dressed as a robot catches his eye.

 _"Tsu-kun! Don't you look so nice?" Nana coos from the kitchen as a 10-year-old Tsuna dressed up as a robot walks into sight. His costume is very obviously handmade from a refrigerator box painted to resemble a well-known character from a recently popular show, but the child can't help but feel pride as he turns to show off his handiwork._

 _"Thanks, Mama!" Tsuna says with a sheepish smile. "Your costume is cool too!" The woman, dressed as a witch, laughs as she waves off his compliment._

 _"This old thing? It's not nearly as cool as your costume. Here." she hands her son a jack-o-lantern shaped trick-or-treat bag before picking up her camera and pointing it at him. "Smile for the camera!" Tsuna does as his mother tells him and smiles one of the biggest smiles that he has ever smiled._

Tsuna smiles fondly at the memory captured in the picture held in his hand. Nothing could ever take away the happiness that he felt in this moment. Not the fact that it was the first Halloween without his father, nor the following memories of being teased by other kids in the neighborhood. Because, in that moment, he was able to experience an emotion that was always so rare for him to experience.

Pride in himself.

* * *

A/N: Hello! This is the first part of a drabble series that I wrote over on my imagines blog (mistsrealillusions) on tumbler. Each one of these drabbles is accompanied with some other Halloween headcanons that I have. I hope you enjoy this!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.


	2. Pumpkins

**Pumpkins  
**

Being an intelligent person, Gokudera knew what pumpkin carving was, but that didn't mean that he had ever done it himself. It wasn't really an activity that seemed all that exciting in comparison to exploring supernatural phenomena. So, when Tsuna seemed shocked to find out that the storm guardian had never carved pumpkins, his sky had taken it upon himself to make sure that he did this Halloween season.

"And we're going to need knives, patterns, and pumpkins! We can't forget the patterns!" Tsuna says excitedly as he, Gokudera, and Yamamoto walk to Tsuna's home one day mid-October. Yamamoto laughs easily at Tsuna's obvious excitement at the prospect of introducing one of his favorite activities to Gokudera.

"You sure seem excited to carve pumpkins, Tsuna." Yamamoto says while smiling his signature smile. Tsuna sheepishly scratches the back of his head as the trio approaches his house.

"Well, even though I don't like the scary things on Halloween, fall is my favorite season since there are so many fun things to do. And, since Gokudera-kun hasn't carved pumpkins before I thought we all could do it for fun!"

The boy in question feels an odd swell of emotion in his chest. During his childhood there weren't many times that he has received attention outside of public events. So, when he found himself to be the center of such positive attention, he didn't quite know what to do. He coughs in an attempt to hide the tears of gratitude that are filling his eyes. Before anyone can comment, Yamamoto slings an arm around his shoulders with a laugh.

"That's cool! Are there any more things you haven't done before?" Gokudera shoves the rain guardian's arm off of his shoulders while fixing him with a withering look that the other happily ignores.

"No, baseball idiot! It's already too much for Juudiame to do something as special as this for me. I couldn't possibly ask for more."

"So there are more things that you've never done before?" Tsuna asks as he opens the gate to his home.

"Well... Yes. B-but I could never ask for more. You've already done so much by insisting that we carve pumpkins."

"I have an idea," Yamamoto says as they enter the yard. "How about a Halloween party?" Gokudera sputters and is about to protest vehemently, when Tsuna's bright smile stops him.

"That's a great idea Yamamoto! I've always thought that a Halloween party would be fun, but I never really knew enough people who might be interested in coming. Though," he pauses to consider Gokudera, "I'd hate to drag you guys into doing an event that you're not interested in."

"Don't worry about me Juudiame!" The silver-haired teen says while puffing out his chest, "I'll be fine with whatever you want to do."

"Okay then. It sounds like a plan! We'll figure out the order of events after I talk to Mom about it okay?"

"Okay, Juudiame!"


	3. Leaves

**Leaves**

 _"Over here Takeshi!" A woman yells to her seven-year-old son. His small head whips up from where he was inspecting a small ant hill with a stick._

 _"Okay, Mama!" He yells enthusiastically. He throws the stick onto the ground and immediately runs to where she is standing beside a large pile of leaves. When he gets close, he extends his arms to hug her legs. Laughing, she reaches down to ruffle his hair._

 _"Silly goose." She pokes his nose as he leans back to look up at her. Laughing he pokes her stomach causing her to laugh as well._

 _"What did you need mama?" Takeshi asks after their laughter has died down some._

 _"Well, you see, now that you're older, mama wanted to show you how to play in the leaves."_

 _"But I already know how to do that!"_

 _"Oh you do? Show me!" Even though he was young, Takeshi knew a challenge when he heard one. So, with a gust of energy, he immediately tuned and ran through the large pile while scattering the leaves everywhere. This elicited another laugh before she chided him." That's not how you play in leaves! This is how you really play in the leaves!"_

 _The woman then leans down, gathers an armful of leaves, flings her smaller pile in the air before falling down onto what remains. Before Takeshi knows what's happening, his mother has pulled him down to the ground with her leaving him to look up at the sky. The young boy watches in wonder as the leaves disperse in the air and float back down to land gently over both of them. As the last of the red and gold leaves land he is left to wonder: is this what magic feels like?_

* * *

"Mom says that we can invite everyone over after we take the kids around the block to trick or treat." Tsuna says as he joins Gokudera and Yamamoto who are sitting on the back porch. Gokudera immediately turns to his boss with a large smile.

"That's wonderful Juudiame!"

"That's great Tsuna!" Yamamoto says as he watches the three kids play and run around Tsuna's back yard.

"Yeah! I mentioned the pumpkin carving and she mentioned that it'd be a good idea to carve them with the kids earlier in the day. Gokudera I'm sorry if you don't-" The bomber shakes his hand dismissively.

"It's okay Juudiame. I doubt that many of the kids have carved pumpkins either so it will be a lot of fun for them, too." Tsuna laughs.

"You're probably right. I know Lambo and I-pin haven't ever gone trick or treating before so mom has been going overboard trying to help them find perfect costumes. I think she might even try to get me one that matches what she has in mind for them."

"They certainly seem to be enjoying the leaves." Yamamoto says just as the game seems to shift from tag to 'king of the mountain'

"Lambo-san is king of the leaves!" Lambo calls as he runs through one of the bigger piles, effectively scattering the pile around.

"Of course they are, baseball idiot." Gokudera says condescendingly before turning to Tsuna in a very respectful voice. "Juudiame, for the party, do you think that we should dress up?"

"Totally! We should make it into a costume party and invite as many people as possible! We can even..." Yamamoto stops listening as he watches the kids kick over the piles that the leaves had been raked into. He knows that helping plan the party is important, but he can't keep himself from standing and retrieving the rakes that are leaning against the house and walking towards the kids. He ignores Gokudera's shout of protest as he chorales the kids around himself.

"Hey, do you guys want to see something really cool?" The trio crowds around him in various degrees of interest as he tries to convince them to help rake the lawn.

"What the hell is his problem?" Gokudera asks as he turns to Tsuna in disgust. "Really. Who does he think he is to get up in the middle of a conversation like that?"

"I dunno, but I'm curious to see what he's going to do." The pair lapse into silence as they watch the group start to rake the leaves into one big pile on the middle of the lawn. As they watch, Tsuna notices an odd look of nostalgia and sadness pass over his friend's face for a moment before his usual smile falls back into place. "Hey, Gokudera?"

"Yes, Juudiame?"

"Have you noticed that Yamamoto has been kind of down lately?" Gokudera turns to watch as Yamamoto laughs at Lambos's failed attempts at raking. He wants to say something negative, like he normally would, but the concerned look on Tsuna's face makes him swallow his first response and reconsider his words.

"Not necessarily, but he has been hanging around my apartment more than usual." Tsuna turns suddenly and gives his storm guardian an odd look. "What? He says he's bored and comes over to 'kill some time' as he says it." Tsuna is about to ask more questions when the sound of cheering brings his eyes back to find the piles of leaves have been put together.

"Great! Now everyone grab an armful and then do as I do, okay?" The group watches as Yamamoto throws the armful into the air and then immediately falls backwards info the pile with a laugh. The other three follow suit soon after and "oo" and "ah" as the leaves fall gently over them. Yamamoto sits up and smiles softly at the looks that the younger three are giving the sky as the last of the leaves fall.

"Again!" Lambo cries as he sits up to repeat the process. There other two follow suit as Yamamoto stands to brush the leaves off of himself. He walks back towards his friends. When he is out of the children's, earshot Gokudera addresses him brusquely.

"What the hell was that about?"

"Oh, that?" Yamamoto laughs sheepishly as he sits parallel to Gokudera. "Nothing much. I just wanted to teach them how to really play in the leaves.


	4. Candy

**Candy**

"Mama! We're home!" Lambo shouts as he and his companions are entering the house. He barely pauses to take off his shoes before running into the living room, trick-or-treat bag in in hand. When he enters the room, he finds Nana and Bianchi sitting together on the sofa drinking tea. She smiles at the boy dressed as his most recent favorite character, Peter Pan, as he comes to a stop in front of her.

"Welcome back! Did you guys have fun?" Nana carefully sets down her cup and gives her full attention to the boy in front of her.

"Yes! Lambo got lots of candy!" The rest of the group, Tsuna, Gokudera, Yamamoto, I-Pin, and Futa, enter the room as well. I-Pin and Futa, dressed as Tinker Bell and a Lost Boy respectively, come to stand on either side of Lambo to show off their bags as well.

Lambo opens his trick it treat bag. Ever since he had been told about how the activity worked he had been so excited to participate. He could already taste the grape candy on his tongue as he pulls it open to show off his plunder. Soon that excitement is replaced with bitter disappointment as he realizes that there is a gaping hole in the bottom. His eyes well with tears.

"Oh No!" Nana says as she pulls the boy into a hug. "Its okay, Mama has a lot of left-over candy that Lambo can have okay?" Lambo sniffs and shakes his head.

"L-Lambo wants h-his candy!" I-Pin and Futa share a glance and look to be about to offer some of their own candy as well in hopes to calm down their companion before the party begins. Before either of them can pipe up, though, Gokudera steps between them and throws his own bag onto the floor.

"Here you go, Stupid Cow, I noticed that your candy was falling out so I picked it up. Now calm down so that we can get this place ready for the party." He doesn't wait to see if the younger boy picks up the bag before he goes off into the kitchen to pull out the treats that were prepared before they left to walk around the neighborhood.

Lambo considers the bag on the ground as his tears start to ebb away. He knows that this was also the storm guardian's first year Trick-or-Treating so he feels some guilt start to worm its way into his head, but he brushes it off to pick up the offered bag. The older boy didn't usually like to share stuff so it would be rude to refuse the offer right?

He picks up the bag and goes to sit by himself as I-Pin and Futa take the opportunity to show off their spoils to Nana. Lambo opens the bag to see what kind of candy is inside. After a few moments, he sees a few coffee-flavored pieces at the bottom. Without pausing too long to consider what he is doing, the Lightning guardian stands up and rushes off to the kitchen where he finds Gokudera filling a bowl with chips.

"Hey, Octopus Head," he says as he places the candy on the kitchen counter, "Lambo hates coffee." He leaves the kitchen before the other guardian has any time to come up with a response. Gokudera smiles to himself as he pockets the candy.

* * *

A/N: I'll upload the rest of these tomorrow. I hope you enjoyed them so far! If you have, then let me know which one you liked the best, other comments, and any criticisms that you may have. Thank you so much for reading and have a wonderful, and safe, Halloween tomorrow!


	5. Scares

**Scares**

"Oni-chan?" Kyoko calls as she enters her brother's room. Ryohei pauses in the middle of a punch to his punching bag to look at his sister.

"Yes, Kyoko? What do you need?"

"Mom says that Hana, Haru, and I can't go to the haunted house unless you go with us. Can you come with us?" She gives him a look that she knows that he can't say no to, but he deftly avoids looking at her face in order to keep his resolve up. He didn't mind doing things with his sister, but, ever since they had returned from the future, he had been avoiding Hana in order to sort out his feelings.

"Why do you girls want to go to a Haunted House? Wouldn't you rather go to Sawada's party?"

"Tsuna has to take the kids trick or treating so we thought we could go before it starts. Please? We really want to go. We'll even pay for your ticket!" It looks as though Ryohei is about to say no, but one look at his sister's face makes his resolve crumble.

"Fine. I'll go." Kyoko squeals as she throws herself forward to hug her brother.

"Thank you so much! I'll let you know what time we're leaving tomorrow once we get the tickets okay? I'll see you later I have to call Haru and Hana to let them know that we can go!" Ryohei chuckles to himself as Kyoko runs out of his room.

* * *

Ryohei had never been to a haunted house before Kyoko had insisted that he join her, Hana and Haru. But, in the five short minutes that they had been inside, he had come to the conclusion that he really enjoyed them. In fact, this was turning out to be one of the most extreme experiences of his life.

"Hah!" He yelled as he punched the fifth person trying to jump scare the girls. The man, who was dressed as a zombie bent over his stomach as he groaned in pain.

"Oni-chan!" Kyoko says as she pulls back on her brother's arm in an attempt to stop him from punching the poor performer again. "Stop punching the performers!"

"But, Kyoko they're scaring you girls." She sighs and shakes her head.

"That's why we're here! It's fun to get spooked at these places. And if you keep punching people we might get kicked out. Besides we're not all that scared. They just mostly startle us." Ryohei looks at the other two girls for confirmation and finds that both look to be relatively okay. He sighs and puts his hands to his sides.

"Alright, I won't punch anyone anymore."

"Thank god!" The zombie man says around his stomach.


	6. Tricks

**Tricks**

"Master, if you wanted to go to the party you could have just gone. You were invited you know." Fran deadpans as he and Mukuro walk in the direction of the Sawada Household. Neither appear as they usually do, though. Instead of their normal appearances, each illusionist appears as a small child who is dressed up in a homemade costume. Fran's costume is a sheet with holes cut for eyes while Mukuro's is a store-bought grim reaper.

"Kufufufu, but that wouldn't be nearly as much fun." He pauses outside of the gate to consider the small house. Even though it is about an hour after trick or treaters would normally be outside asking for candy, the porch light is still on. He laughs to himself as he lets himself and his student past the gate. "Now remember, Fran. This is an exercise in your ability to disguise yourself. If anyone is able to tell who you are you have failed."

"Yes, Master. Though, if I succeed can we attend the party? I'm sure that they'll have something more filling than this candy inside and you aren't the best at providing good food." Mukuro rolled his now brown eyes as he reached for the doorbell.

"Yes, but only if you succeed." Moments later the door is opened by a slightly confused Tsuna.

"Trick it treat!" The pair of 'children' call while extending their bags towards the brunette in expectation.

"It's kind of late to be out isn't it? He asks cautiously while considering them.

"Mama lets us be out as late as we want!" Mukuro says in a demanding voice. "Now give us candy or we'll give you a trick!"

"Now, now," Nana says from the foyer, bowl in hand, "we have plenty of candy so we won't be needing any tricks from tonight, alright?" She lowers the bowl down to a height where they can see what candy they have to offer. The boys greedily take a whole fist-full each. Tsuna makes a small noise of protest, but his mother shakes her head.

"Thank you, ma'am," Fran says as he adds his share to his bag.

"You are more than welcome! Happy Halloween!" Moments later the door is shut and the 'boys' are heading towards the gate.

"That was success, master. Now I'm going back for the party." His outfit falls away into shadow as his form morphs back into his original one. Mukuro follows suit but puts a hand on his shoulder to stop him. His other hand extends forward in expectation.

"Your bag. If you're holding it they may be suspicious."

"I know that you are morally questionable, but I never knew you would actually steal candy from a child."

"You certainly aren't much of a child. But, you also can't jeopardize missions like this. Now hand it over." Fran considers his master for a moment before he concentrates and molds the bag of candy into a phanny pack using his illusions.

"There. Now if you'll excuse me in going to go and get free food."


	7. Trick or Treat

**Trick or Treat**

"Oh! Welcome back Mr. Hibari!" A woman dressed as a witch says as the school prefect and his assistant approach the information desk of the Namimori hospital. She smiles. "We are almost done setting up. If you want to go ahead and go to the third floor one of the nurses will direct you to your station." The teen nods before turning to walk to the elevator, his faithful companion only one pace behind.

As the doors close, Hibari removes his jacket and allows Kusakabe to replace it with a black cape. He holds the jacket out for his right-hand-man to take, which he does promptly. In its place a pair of fake vampire teeth rest momentarily on his hand before he positions them in his mouth. The doors open just as the teeth are in place and his jacket is folded and placed under the pompadour's leather-clad arm. He immediately walks to the nurse's station.

"Well hello! Long time no see! How have you been? Anything exciting happen this year?" Hibari pauses to consider the events over the past year before deciding to appease the nurse with a small amount of news.

"I got a pet." He lifts the cloak around his shoulders to reveal a hiding Hibird. The bird chirps happily and lands on the counter. The small fluff of yellow flaps its wings to display two small fake black bat wings that are attached to its wings. The nurse immediately coos and reaches to pet the small bird.

"It's so adorable!" She pauses to look around before giving him mischievous look, "Normally we don't allow pets, but I think the kids will get a kick out of this little guy so I'll let him stay. Here follow me." When the middle aged woman stands Hibird takes it upon itself to land on her shoulder. She laughs as she moves around the counter and leads the prefect to a small room where a bowl of candy sits. "You know the drill. The kids will be walking down the corridor asking all of the volunteers for candy. If you have any questions just give me a shout." She gives the bird an affectionate pat on the head before the 'bat' flies back to perch on Hibari's shoulder.

Hibari sits in the chair and picks up the bowl just as the first stream of children come down the hallway. The first child who approaches him is a small boy holding a nurses hand. His face is painted to make him look like a lion and it seems as though he wants to ask for the candy that the other is holding, but he bashfully hides his face in the nurse's legs. She laughs and tries to pull him away, but he refuses.

"You'll never get any candy that way," she jokes.

"Carnivore," Hibari calls to the child "you don't need to be afraid." He extends the bowl further. The boy pokes his head around to look at the teen offering him candy with a look of confusion.

"Why did you call me that?" He asks as he reaches to take a piece and place it in his pumpkin pail.

"Lions are carnivores," he says simply. "And, carnivores are strong." The boy looks away and shakes his head.

"But, I'm not strong. The doctors say that I'm really weak." Hibari shakes his head dismissively as he leans down further from his chair to be closer to the boy's level.

"They're wrong. You're strong and you'll do well." The boys eyes light up and he lets go of the nurse to hug the somewhat stiff teen.

"Thank you mister!" He says with a smile as the nurse guides him to the next station. Hibari watches as he goes a look of remembrance passing over his features before he turns to look down to give his next patron his attention and a piece of candy.

Kusakabe covertly places a hand on his shoulder as a sign of support. The raven-haired teen doesn't spare his subordinate a glance, but he doesn't need to for his second-in-command to understand his appreciation for the gesture.


	8. Party

**Party**

When Chrome and Mukuro had received the invitation, he had insisted that she had to go to party. Initially, she had assumed that he would be going as well. It wasn't until after her witch's costume was purchased that he had informed her that he didn't want anything to do with the party himself. Once the rest of the group had heard the news, no one else had showed any interest in going with her which had made her feel disappointed. She had considered not going as well, but a message from Haru the night before insisting that she come had changed her mind.

The walk to Tsuna's house feels lonely and cold. It reminds her of the time she had spent with her parents. Chrome tries her best to keep bad memories at bay, but they flash before her mind in rapid succession as she makes her way through the streets.

 _"Mama?" A young Nagi asks she points to a small princess costume. "Can I dress up this year?" Her mother takes one look at the costume and turns up her nose and doesn't say a word as she forcibly pulls her daughter away from the display._

 _"Our family will never participate in such a commoner's holiday"_

 _"You are such a_ _ **disgrace**_ _, Nagi. Of course you can't go trick or treating! What would the other families say if they saw our daughter mingling with those lower than us?"_

 _"Put that costume down this_ _ **instant**_ _."_

"Chrome, dear, are you alright?" The warm and semi-familiar voice pulls her out of her memories to find Nana standing outside of gate placing a jack-o-lantern outside of her gate. Without realizing it, her feet had carried her to the Sawada household while she had been lost in her memories. A small hand reaches up to her face to find a few tears collecting on her face.

"Y-yes," she says softly avoiding warm brown eyes in embarrassment. Nana is about to say something more when a loud familiar shriek of excitement down the street interrupts their conversation.

"Chrome!" Haru calls from behind the purple-haired girl. "Your costume looks so cute!" The compliment elicits a blush from the girl. Turning she finds the brunette, dressed as an odd cross between an manatee and a mermaid, making her way quickly to the pair standing outside. As soon as she is within range the overly-excited girl pulls her more timid counterpart into a tight hug.

"T-Thanks," Chrome murmurs once Haru lets go. She self-consciously pulls at the short black dress. Her witch's hat tilted from Haru's zealous hug. Nana laughs warmly as she opens the gate.

"Everyone is already inside. Why don't the two of you come on in?"

"Okay!" Haru links her arm through Chrome's and gently leads her through the gate and towards the front door that looks very warm and inviting. "Are you ready to have lots of fun tonight?" Chrome nods and smiles as they walk into the warm house together.

* * *

A/N: And that's the end of them! Even though they were difficult to write, I really had fun writing these. They were out of my comfort zone since I usually prefer to write longer pieces, but I still like how I was able to connect all of them with so few words. For right now this piece is finished, but, in the future, I may come back and edit them to make them longer and more fleshed out. I may also pull out a few and continue them. Not really sure, but I always want to leave that as an option!

Thank you so much for reading! If you have any comments/criticisms please let me know! I'm always wanting to improve my writing and, especially wen it comes to things that I'm newer at, such as drabbles, any sort of help is appreciated.

Happy Halloween!


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